Included in the dash is a dot-matrix menu with selection buttons for ride control and steering assist, and the on/off controls for automatic door locks, reverse mirrors that lower for parking, lock confirmation beep, express-down driver window and a host of other interesting features.
The electronic topper to all this is that the individual preferences for steering, ride, seat position, outside mirrors and each of the menu items can be saved in memory as the preferences of two different drivers. Hit the key fob, the keyless entry pad or the special buttons on the driver's door and all of the saved settings are applied. Change any setting and the car will ask if you wish to save the new setting or revert to the old one.
We should add that Lincoln has an answer for prospective owners who don't number computer programming among their personal skills. Lincoln sales consultants will walk you through the intricacies of the Continental's Memory Profile System or, if you like, preset the system to your tastes. However, we'd characterize the system as user-friendly, and doubt that anyone will have much difficulty with it after their first run-through.
The Continental comes with its own umbrella and drying case, and there are some interesting options, including a cargo organizer and cart installed in the trunk, and a voice-activated, hands-free cellular telephone that plays through the stereo system.
The leather, fabrics and surfaces in the cabin of the Continental are first-rate, with a solid, rich feeling throughout. The swoops and angles inside blend well with the modernistic mixture of analog and digital readouts, and it begins to feel at last like a $40,000 car should feel.
Ford suspension engineers have given the Continental a beautifully taut, quiet ride based on air-spring technology the company has been refining for more than a decade. The Continental uses German-made struts with electronic-control modules that adjust the suspension through plush, normal and firm ranges. The ride automatically reverts to firm whenever the road inputs dictate a switch, with the process completed in just milliseconds.
The steering, which we liked best in the low-assist mode, gives the front-drive Continental a very beefy, glued-down feel. This big luxury car astounded us with its sure-footedness on a drive through the hills of the Virginia horse country south of Washington, D.C. Only when you get going really fast does the Continental's 3900 lb. really show up, along with an industrial grade of understeer.
Understeer is car-speak for a vehicle's tendency to resist directional change, and it's a universal trait among front-drive cars. What it means, in a nutshell, is that the faster you attempt to drive the car through a turn, the more it wants to go straight ahead.
In the Continental's case, this trait is consistent and wholly predictable - no nasty surprises if you decide to apply the brakes in the middle of a corner, for example.
The rather bland looking Lincoln Continental, although it is an extremely capable car, has to make an impression in a sea of cars that includes Acura, Audi, BMW, Cadillac, Infiniti and Lexus.
It does succeed on some counts: For example, all of these other makes offer unique features but come nowhere near the electronic wizardry of the Continental.
And even when you get past the bells and whistles, there is an excellent, quick, luxury sedan with a smooth ride and performance features that make it more entertaining than most. Best in class? Probably not. A much-improved vehicle? Most definitely.
